NHL | Must-Haves | 12/5/17

Nathan MacKinnon (FDraft: $14,500 DK: $6,700 FD: $6,800): Tonight’s first Must-Have gets an appetizing matchup when the Buffalo Sabres come to Colorado to take on the Avalanche. Per Vegas, the Avalanche are favorites, with an over/under set for 5.5 goals. MacKinnon is having a great year so far, registering 29 points (8G, 21A) to go along with 70 shots on net in 25 games played. MacKinnon will be in his normal role tonight, centering both the team’s top line and top power play line. He gets to face off against a Buffalo team that ranks dead last in the NHL giving up 3.41 GAA. On the other hand, this Colorado team is one of the highest scoring offenses in the league, currently scoring 3.10 goals per game, which ranks them 8th in the NHL. Buffalo gives up 31 shots on net per game, and this should bode well for MacKinnon, who ranks first among forwards for shots on net this year. Robin Lehner, who’s the starting netminder for Buffalo tonight, has been awful this year. He comes into this game with a record of 5-12-2, to go along with a GAA of 2.98, and save % of .903. The last time MacKinnon was a Must-Have, he erupted for 1G and 4A, which was good for 13.50 DraftKings points. Although that may not be likely again tonight, he offers multi-point upside in this matchup, so make sure you lock him in with confidence.

Ondrej Palat (FDraft: $9,400 DK: $4,600 FD: $5,400): Tonight, the Lightning welcome the New York Islanders into Tamp in what should draw a fantastic matchup for our second Must-Have. The Islanders will play their second game in as many nights, after winning in a shootout against the Florida Panthers last night. Per Vegas, the Lightning are one of the heaviest favorites on the slate, and with an over/under of 6.0, we should see plenty of pucks finding the back of the net for this Tampa Bay team. Palat comes into this game with 17 points (7G, 10A) to go along with 52 shots on net in 26 games played. He will play his minutes on the team’s second line, alongside Brayden Point, and the always dangerous Nikita Kucherov. He will also be slotted in his normal role on the team’s second power play unit. The Islanders come into this game surrendering 3.23 goals per game, which ranks them among the league’s worst. On the other hand, Tampa Bay is one of the league’s most dangerous offenses, scoring 3.60 goals per game, which ranks them second in the NHL. The Islanders are also killing off only 76% of their penalties, which is also among the worst in the league. This should bode well for a Tampa team that currently converts on 27% of their man advantages, which obviously places them tops in the league. Palat comes into this game with six points on the man advantage, and with a shooting percentage of 13.5%, which is slightly above his career rate of 12.4%, we could see Palat finding the back of the net in this one. There are many factors that make Palat a great play tonight, so make sure you lock him in.